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Mine are. Falls are so bad for us old people, on real old people it often leads to all kinds of complications that sometimes lead to the final.
I do exercises each morning and evening to strengthen my legs and I suppose it helps. I also take a half hour walk every day with my dogs.
Still I know my legs are much weaker than only a few years ago. And my balance and weight shifting is much poorer than I think it should be at 73.
It's not just strength. It's also coordination and reaction time.
In mid-life I had some problems with weight gain. My knee would buckle and down I'd go. Once I lost that extra weight it didn't happen any more.
But I am much more cautious on stairs than I used to be and always keep an eye out for anything available to catch ahold of than I used to be. Both sets of stairs in our house are curved and those are treacherous - especially if I'm carrying a basket of clothing and can't see my feet.
Sometimes when I'm coming down the stairs I think about how older people in two story homes eventually come to live on the lower story.
I think falling down when older is more related to balance and reaction time - reflexes. I went walking out on the local Riverwalk yesterday; there was a heaved brick that I tripped over. I did not fall but I was shocked at how far forward I traveled before I was able to "right the ship."
Thanks for sharing this. My leg muscles became week when I was on statins. My doctor was of no help. I took myself off the statins and eventually my numbers became normal. In my case, it was another med I was on that was causing the high cholesterol count. When I finished that, the statins weren't needed.
Falls don't "just happen," and people don't fall because they get older. Often, more than one underlying cause or risk factor is involved in a fall. A risk factor is something that increases a person's risk or susceptibility to a medical problem or disease.
As the number of risk factors rises, so does the risk of falling. Many falls are linked to a person's physical condition or a medical problem, such as a chronic disease. Other causes could be safety hazards in the person's home or community environment.
I guess I'm from the use it or lose it mentality. Those seniors we roller skate with are in their late 60's up to 92. The 92 year old went down in front of me, got right back up, and skated away. I'm going to keep riding my bike, skiing, ice skating, and roller skating until they take me out feet first.
All these comments on statins....when they do the research to see if the benefits of statins are worth it, in terms of lowering cholesterol and more importantly actually lowering heart disease, what about all these other side effects?
A fall for a senior can result in broken bones and an continued downward spiral of dependence and poor health, maybe death from pneumonia if they are immobile long enough. THESE things must be considered before putting someone on meds that may lower cholesterol a few points and MIGHT stave off heart disease.
Talk about wake-up calls! I got on my rowing machine the other day and it sank!
No respect. No respect at all.
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